Method of burning liquid or gaseous fuels.



' No. 755,377. PATENTED MAR. 22. 1904.

. c. a. LUGKB. METHOD 0? BURNING LIQUID 0g GASEOUS FUELS APPLIOLTIQH TILED JGLY S0, 1901.

' uid or hascous Fuels, fully describstiend rcp- PatentedMa-rch 22, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES E. LL'C-KI-J,

OF saw YORK, N. Y.

METHOD OF BURN'iNG LIQUID OR GASEOUS FUELS SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters rate-mm. 755,377, dated March 22, 1904. I

Application si-ii 1 11i; 30, 1901.

To all whom, if may (to/warn:

Be it known. that 1, CHARLES F. LL'FKE, a citizen of the United States, residin at Xew York city, county of New York, Jr State of New York, have invented certain r.- ful Improvements in Methods of Burning Liqresented in the following specification and the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the same.

This invention relates to the combustion of improved method of burning oils although the method is applicable to other liquid fuels j and in partto gaseous fuels.

The use of llquid and gaseous fuels has heretofore been-hunted by reason of the methods employed in burning the same nnsatisfactory and unsuitable for various purposes.

By my improved method, however. I an] en- J. abled to obtain by the use of such fuels substantially the-same results as can obtained by the use of solid fuels, such ascoal and coke. For many purposes for Wilzill a coal fire has been heretofore used it is desirable and necessary to have a flame exteniinga conslderable distance beyond the bed of the fire 1 .and to be able to'control such flame- By my invention 1 am enabled to secure this result with liquid or gaseous fuels.

In burning liquid fuel, such as oii, in accordi sufiicient air for the complete combustion of ance with my invention the oil or cab-er liquid mass of pieces or fragments of a suitable refractory material.

tion takes place within the bed. eous mixture of oil-vapor and air fio'i sthrough such a combustion-bed its direct advance will be prevented and it will becauseci to spread out through the subdivided passzes of the bed, and thus to advance in incl-ea; groh1me and with diminishing veloclty and without ,tlitiusion with other gas, as descn'bed in my application filed in the- United Scszes Patent I Ofiice June 7, 1901, Serial No. 63,5499, and if and use- As the oil enters this hot 1 combustion-bed it isvaporized, and the vapor mixing with the air is ignited and the combus As the gas- 5 Serial No. 70,230. (No model.)

the complete combustion of the oil fed to the combustion-bed and they are admitted in such quantity as to be within the capacity of the combustion-bed and in such a manner that the mixture will move with an initial velocity mation through the mixture. then the fuel will be completely burned within the combustion-bed, the combustion taking place at the surface of constant velocity in accordance with the method of my said application and as more fully explained therein.

I mannei'to cause the gaseous mixtu re as it flows i therethrough to advance in increasing volume and with diminishing velocity. I have found,

however, a bed of loose pieces or-fragments. of refractory material to answer the purpose.

well and prefer to use the same. It will be 4 understood, however, that by the term ,com-

bastion-bed, as used in the claims, I mean a bed of suitable material so arranged as to permit the gaseous mixture of fuel and air or other combustion-supporting gas to flow therethrough and to cause the mixture as it flows therethrough to advance in increasing volume and with diminishing velocity and without -diti'usion with other gas. For obtaining a flame beyond the surface of the combustionbed 1 supply the oil and air to the comb'usi tion-bed in proportions such that there isnot the oil, but still sufiicient to give the resulting gaseous mixturetlie property of self-propagation of inflammation. The oil-vapor will I then be partially consumed within the combus? the bed will burn at and beyond the surface of the bed, forming a longer or shorter flame, according to the proportions in which the oil and air-are fed to the bed and according as the flame is influenced by outside conditions. This combustion at and beyond the surface of the bed will be sustained by oxygen from the surrounding atmosphere or from a'irvor other greater than the rate of propagation of inflam I The eom abu'stion-bed may be formed in any suitable tion-bed and the remainder passing through.

suitable gas fed to the flame in any suitable manner, or as-now practiced in connection with coal or coke fires. It is necessary that the bed should be hot in order to vaporize the we oil. For starting the fire the bed may be heated in any suitable manner. For example,

'a gaseous fuel may be used for heating the bed, or I may employ at the start a bed of burning coal or coke and afterward maintain this bed by the addition of fresh coal or coke, thus employing my'method in conjunction with an ordinary coal or coke fire, or I may after starting with coal or coke add loose pieces of suitable refractory material to form a permanent bed as the coal burns away. Vl'hen a gaseous fuel is employed, the'process of burning it will correspond to the above with the omission of the step of vaporizing fuel. The fuel and air or other combustionsustaining gas may be fed to the combustionbed separately, so as to be mixed therein, or

- out the method and illustrating some of the.

may be fed together through a single nozzle or nozzles, as may be desired.

The accompanying drawings-illustrate several ways in which my method may be carried out and several applications of the same. 'It will be understood, however; that such apparatus as I have shown in the drawings is shown merely by way of example and for the pu lpose of disclosing suitable means for carryin uses to which the method is applicable.

In said drawings, Figure 1 illustrates a sim-j ple form of burner which may be used in burnmg liquid or gaseous fuels 1n accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 shows a modified form thereof. Figs. 3, 4, and 5 illustrate apparatus for employing my improved process, being, respect1vely,'a crucible furnace, a reverberatory furnace, and a steamboilc'r furnace in which gaseous or liquid fuels are to be-burned in accordance with my invention, Fig. 3 also i showing a simple form of apparatus for supplying liquid fuel and a combustion-support ing gas to the furnace. l

Referring to Fig. 1, the fuel and the combustion-supporting gasare admitted in proper proportions through a comparatively small inlet-opening 2, and above the inlet-opening the walls of the burner are spread apart to form a. space of gradually-increasing trans 'verse area, and the space between these spread ing walls is filled with small pieces of suitable refractory material placed loosely therein to forma combustion-bed 3. In using this burner the fuel and combustion supporting gas are supplied to the inletopening 2 by any suitable means, and if the fuel is a liquid it will be vaporized (assuming the combustion-bed 3 to be' sufficiently heated) and the vapor will mix with the combustion-supporting gas, and the mixture rising through the combustionbed will be caused to spread out and advance with diminishing velocity. Combustion will then take place within the bed, and if the pro-- portions of the fuel and combustion-supportmg gas are such that there is not enough gas for the complete combustion of the fuel combustion will also take place at and beyond the surface ofthe combustion-bed, as heretofore explained. lfa gaseous fuel is employed, the action will be the same, except that there will be no vaporizing of the fuel. In Fig. 2 the fuel and comhustion-supporting gas arefc'd to the combustion-bed 3 through separate'noz: zles 4t and 5. \Vith this burner, if the fuel is a gas, the mixing of the fuel-gas and combusfuel is used, it will be necessary only to pr0-' vide means for, vaporizing the same at the start as it passes through the nozzle 4. If,

howevcna liquid fuel which isJnot readily vaporized is used. as aheavy oil,"it will hence- .essary to provide for a primary heating of the combustion-bed. This can be accomplished in any suitable manne-r,1as by using a gaseous fuel or by using a bed of burning coal, as before explained. By varying the proportions of thefuel and combustion-supporting gas the flame extending beyond the bed may be varied,

-,as before pointed out.

Fig; 3 shows a simple form of crucible fur pace for burning liquid or gaseous fuel inaccordance with my,invention. The combusti 'n-bed 3 is located in the bottom of the furniloegjand the fuel and combustion-supporting gas ,e admitted through pipes 6 and 7, which are connected to the nozzle 8, which extends into theqcombustion-bed. The opening 9 is provided, foradmitting air above the combus: tion-bedfor sustaining the combustion above the bed. lathe-apparatus shown in this fig-- ure for supplying the constituents of the gaseous mixture to the furnace,'O represents 4 a tank for oil or other liquid fuel and A a tank for air or other combustion-supporting gas, the air being supplied to this tank byany suitable means adapted to maintain the desired pressure therein. Thepipe 6 connects 'the. oil-tank O and the pipe 7' with the airtank A, and the pipes 6 and? are provided with valves 0 and a, respectively. By means of the valve 0 the flow of oil to the nozzle 8 may be controlled according to'the amountof air passing through the pipe 7 to secure the proper proportion of oil to air, and by the valve a the fiow of air to the nozzle may be controlled to cause the air to enter the com? bustion-bed with sufficient velocity to secure a movement of the resulting gaseous mixture from the point 'of mixing with a velocity greater than the rate of propagation of inflammation of the mixture. The proper proportions of oil and air or other combustiom supporting gas that is, proportions such according to the nature of the constituents that the gaseous mixture resulting from the mixing of the oil-vapor and air will have the' property of sell pro;-agat,ion of inflammat-ionand the mw-cssa-ry velocity of flow of air through the nozazlc'inay be readily determined by experiment.

Fig. 4 shows the application of the invention to a reverberatory furnace; As here shown,the fuel and combustion-Sn pporting gas are fed to the combustion-bed 3 through the nozzle 8, and 'air is admitted through'an opening 9 for sustaining combustion above the combustion-bed.

Fig. 5 shows the application of the inven tion to a steam-boiler furnace. Two combined fuel and combustion-supporting gas inlet no zxg zles 8 are shown leading to the combustionbed 3 from below.

I have found that by 1 .y mehod a very perfeet 'combustionof both light and heavy oils may be secured, and by varying -the proporzo'tions of oil and air supplied to the combustion-bed the character of the tire may be readily varied from one having no surface flame to one having a surface flame of almost any desired length. Moreover, the character of the flame may be varied in the manner now practiced with coal fires: This perfect combustion, combined with the production of a surface flame changeable at will both in length and character, is extremely important in many industrial operations. It should also be noted that by reason of the hot bed of solid matter I obtain a steadiness of heating power which it is impossible to secure by the methods heretofore employed for burning liquid and gase- 5 one fuels and which has heretofore been attainable only with coal or other solid fuel.

- WVhat I claim is 1. The methodlof burning fluid fuel which consists in causing the fuel and a suitable com- 4o bustion-supporting gas in proportions such that there will be-an excess of fuel over the quantity required for perfect chemical combination with the oxygen of the supportinggas to flow into a hot combustion-bed, the sup porting-gas moving with such velocity as to cause the resulting mixture to move with a velocity greater than the rate of propagation of inflammation through the mixture, and the combustion-bed being of such a nature as to cause the mixture to spread out so that the successive surfaces of uniform veiocity shall have adjacent points in any such surface at substantially the same distance from the place where the spreading begins, thereby reducing the velocity of the mixture to the rate of propagation ofinflemmation and preventing diffusion with other gas; and burning within the bed so much ofthe fuel as therein forms with the supplied oxygen an explosive gaseous mixture and burning at orbeyond'the surface of the bed the remainder of the fuel, substantially as described.

2. :The method of burning liquid fuel which consists in causing the fuel and a suitable com- 5 bustion-supporting gas in proportions such ing-gas movingwith such velocity as to cause propagation of inflammation through the mixture, and the combustion-bed being of such a nature as to cause the mixture to spread out so that the successive surfaces of uniform velocity shall have adjacent points-in any such surface at substantially the same distance from y the place where the spreading begins, thereby reducing the velocity of the mixture to the rate of propagation of inflammation and preventing diffusion with other gas; and burning within the bed so much of the fuel as therein forms with the supplied oxygen an explosive 85 mixture, and burning at or beyond the surface of the bed the remainder of the fuel, substantially as described.

3. The method of burningliquid fuel which consists in causing the fuel and a suitable combustion-supporting gas to flow into ahot combustion-bed whereby the fuel will be vaporized and mix with the gas, the supporting-gas moving with such velocity as to cause the resulting mixture to move with a'velocity greater 5 than the rate of propagation of inflammation through the mixture, and the combustion-bed being of such a nature as to cause the mixture to spread out so that the successive surfaces of uniform velocity shall haveadjacent points in any such surface at substantially the same distance from the place where the spreading begins, thereby reducing the velocity of the mixture to the rate of propagation of inflammation and preventing diffusion -w1th other gas, and burning the fuel at least partially within thebed, substantially as described.

4. The methodof burning fluid fuel which consists in causing the fuel and a suitable combustion-supporting gas in proportions such that there will be an excess of fuel over the on entity required'for' perfect chemical combination with the oxygen of the supporting-gas to flow into ahot combustion-bed, the supportthe resulting mixture to move with a velocity greater than the rate of propagation of inflammation through the mixture, and the combustion-bed being of such a nature as to cause the mixture to spread out so that the successive surfaces of uniform velocity shall have adjacent points in any such surface at substantially the same distance from the place where the spreading begins, thereby reducing the velocity ofthe mixture to the rate of propagation of inflammation and preventing diffusion with other gas; burning within the bed so much of the fuel as therein forms with the sup? plied oxygen an explosive mixture, and burning at or beyond the surface of the bed the remainder of" the fuel; and varying the proportions of the shall have adjacent points in any such surface at substantially the same distance from the place. where the spreading begins, thereby reducing the velocity of the mixture to the rate of propagation of inflammation and preventing diffusion with other gas; burning the fuel at least partially within the bed; and varying proportions of the fuel and gas to change the character of the flame from one having no surface flametc one having a surface flame of greater v or less length, as desired, substantially as de' scribed.-

In testimony whereof I have hereuntoset my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

cnaanns LUCKE.

lVitnesses: a

A. L. Kn'u'r, A. A. V. 

